Systems and methods for a consumer to determine food/medicine interactions

ABSTRACT

One embodiment of the present invention relates to systems and methods for detecting harmful and/or hazardous ingredients that may cause an allergic reaction, interfere with the effectiveness of a prescription drug, exacerbate symptoms associated with a chronic illness, and/or cause another undesired reaction.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is based on U.S. Ser. No. 60/380,736, filed May14, 2002 and is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 10/272,596,filed Oct. 16, 2002, which is based on U.S. Ser. No. 60/329,927 filedOct. 17, 2001.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

One embodiment of the present invention relates to systems and methodsfor detecting harmful and/or hazardous ingredients that may cause anallergic reaction, interfere with the effectiveness of a prescriptiondrug, exacerbate symptoms associated with a chronic illness, and/orcause another undesired reaction (for the purposes of this application,such a harmful and/or hazardous ingredient that may cause an allergicreaction, interfere with the effectiveness of a prescription drug,exacerbate symptoms associated with a chronic illness, and/or causeanother undesired reaction may be referred to as an “unwantedingredient”).

Another embodiment of the present invention provides for the detectionof such unwanted ingredients (e.g., as mentioned in the nutritionaland/or composition labels for food, beverage and/or drug products) on areal-time automated basis in places where these commodities are sold,prepared and/or served (e.g., including, but not limited to,supermarkets, restaurants and/or related businesses (e.g., in thehospitality industry, camps, schools, manufacturers, health care and/orhome care facilities)).

For the purposes of this application, the term “store manager”,“administrator”, and “actor” may be used essentially interchangeablywithin the business environments described above.

Further, for the purposes of this application, the term “real-time” isintended to refer to a process that happens at once or essentiallyinstantaneously (as opposed to a process that is completed in parts orover an extended time period (wherein such extended time periodcomprises, for example, a time period of a few hours or overnight)).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology estimates that 2%of adults and 8% of children in the United States are afflicted withfood allergies (an estimated total of 7 million Americans according tothe Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network). The allergic familyrepresents an estimated $25 billion of grocery spending per year.

Allergies are believed the leading cause of chronic disease in UnitedStates, costing the healthcare system about $18 billion dollarsannually. It is estimated that 150-200 people die each year from foodallergies. Food allergy is believed the leading cause of anaphylaxisoutside a hospital setting accounting for approximately 30,000 emergencyroom visits and 2,000 hospitalizations. The Epinephrine injection is themost effective method of treating anaphylaxis; however in a 1999 studyconducted by Mt. Sinai Medical Center, only 32% of 101 parentsadministered it correctly, and only 21% of physicians administered itcorrectly.

In a 1999 study by the Mt. Sinai Medical Center, 91 sets of parents wereasked to identify products whose ingredients their children must avoid.The most restricted food groups, peanut products and milk products,yielded correct answers in only 54% and 7%, respectively.

Indeed, reading labels to ensure they do not contain any harmful orunwanted product may be a complex and time consuming process. There aremore than 30 essentially synonymous terms for milk alone.

Moreover, some labels may identify an ingredient, such as mayonnaise,without specifying its sub-ingredient such as “egg” (while individualswith egg allergies must avoid those products as well).

The NCPI (National Council on Patient Information) estimates that 95% ofindividuals over 65 (i.e., 32 million Americans) receive dailyprescriptions (an average of 2.4 prescriptions per person). This groupaccounts for 13.4% of the population but accounts for 42% of totaloutpatient prescription spending.

In a study reported in the Jun. 12, 2002 issue of Annals of EmergencyMedicine relating to elderly patients admitted to an urban hospital ER,the average number of prescriptions medications per patient was six.However, only 42% of these patients could correctly identify theirmedications. Additionally only 15% could identify their medication'sindications.

Further, in a long-awaited national study conducted by the University ofWisconsin-Madison, (findings released by the FDA Jun. 18, 2002)regarding the distribution and “usefulness” of the medicine leaflets,one of every three leaflets received a low score, “1” or “2”, out of 5,for print size, print quality, line spacing and ease of reading.

Additionally, merely the process of reading food labels may pose greatdifficulty for the following individuals:

-   -   The visually impaired who may strain to read the fine print of        nutritional labels.    -   Individuals whose main language is not English.    -   Individuals who suffer from learning disabilities, dyslexia, or        struggle with literacy.    -   Any individual who falls under the American with Disabilities        Act, ADA, whose manual dexterity compromises their ability to        read labels, e.g. those suffering from Parkinson Disease,        Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy, etc.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention may be used, for example, by any individual whosedietary regimen has specific restrictions and/or requirements for avariety of health and/or nutritional reasons.

Further, the present invention may be used by anyone who wishes toreceive information in an automated format (and thereby reduce the humanerror associated with correctly reading, deciphering and interpretingnutritional terminology).

Under one embodiment of the present invention customers are able to scantheir products and their barcode subscriber card in order to receivereal-time information related to the compatibility between the productthey scanned and their profile (the present invention may employ mobilewireless scanners, point of sale (POS) terminals, and/or stationaryself-service terminals). The profile may contain information regarding acustomer's allergies, prescriptions, chronic illness and conditions,and/or specific dietary requirements. The system may translate variousterminologies used in nutritional and/or ingredients labels, compare thecomposition information with the customer's profile, and alert thecustomer to the presence of harmful ingredients and/or a prescribed foodsubstance.

The present invention may generate an alarm for any substance and/oringredient contained in a product (including Over The Counter substancesand/or products) that will cause an undesired, harmful and/or allergicreaction, interfere with the effectiveness of a prescription drug,and/or exacerbate symptoms associated with a chronic illness. Of note,for the purposes of the present application the term “Over The Counter”is intended to refer to any medicines, vitamins, supplements, etc. whichare available without a prescription.

As an example illustration of use of an embodiment of the presentinvention, a parent shopping in a supermarket will be able to check thatproducts he or she is purchasing are compatible with the identifiedallergy of his son (for example tree-nuts), or does not containsubstances he or she wishes to avoid (for example: The Feingold Dietrecommends removal of Yellow dye #5 in the diet of a child diagnosedwith Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).

As another example illustration of use of an embodiment of the presentinvention, an elderly person will easily check the compatibility his orher prescriptions and any product purchased Over The Counter and/or inthe grocery aisles.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1: System Architecture (Physical View)

Illustrates the system architecture and provides a physical view oftiers involved in the overall system according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2: Package Diagram

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention blown-up into logicalpackages that would function in tandem to work as a full-fledged system.

FIG. 3: Client-side Class Diagram

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention showing a schematicof the client-side interface and various objects that would participateat the user end.

FIG. 4: Server-side Class Diagram

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention showing a schematicof the server-side interface and various objects that would participateat the server end (thereby correlating an n-tier architecture followedby the system).

FIG. 5: High Level Use Case Diagram for Customer

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention showing possiblescenarios under which the customer would interact with the system.

FIG. 6: High Level Use Case Diagram for Store Manager(s)

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention showing possiblescenarios under which the store manager(s) would interact with thesystem.

FIG. 7: High Level Use Case Diagram for Administrator

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention showing possiblescenarios under which the administrator would interact with the system.

FIG. 8: Deployment Diagram

Illustrates an embodiment of the present invention showing theimplementation level architecture providing an overview of how thesystem would be deployed.

Among those benefits and improvements that have been disclosed, otherobjects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingfigures. The figures constitute a part of this specification and includeillustrative embodiments of the present invention and illustrate variousobjects and features thereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein;however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments aremerely illustrative of the invention that may be embodied in variousforms. In addition, each of the examples given in connection with thevarious embodiments of the invention are intended to be illustrative,and not restrictive. Further, the figures are not necessarily to scale,some features may be exaggerated to show details of particularcomponents. Therefore, specific structural and functional detailsdisclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as arepresentative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variouslyemploy the present invention.

Referring now to FIG. 1, one embodiment of the present invention isshown. Under this embodiment of the present invention the system hasbeen conceived to work in an n-tier architecture, where the customerswould be provided with multiple ways to interact with the system. Moreparticularly, FIG. 1 shows that the Client-end 1 would allow variousdevices like computers, PDA, mobile phones, static terminals installedin the store location and other handheld devices to scan item barcodesand/or nutrition labels and compare that information with the customer'snutrition profile (the term customer profile may herein after be usedsynonymously with nutrition profile). In one example (which example isintended to be illustrative and not restrictive) the client interfacemaintains a connection to the Internet via the customer's InternetService Provider (ISP) and/or by using the connection available at thestore location. FIG. 1 illustrates the system architecture and providesa physical view of the tiers involved in the overall system according tothis embodiment. The Client-end 1 may include devices as well as theclient application that the customers would use to access the system.The client application could be browser-based and may be accessed fromdesktops or kiosks, or small devices such as handhelds, mobile phones,or add-ons, that would be embedded into static terminals or smalldevices such as handhelds or mobile phones. The Client-end 1 mayinteract with the system via an Internet connection 2. WAP enableddevices such as mobile phones and PDAs may interact with the systemthrough a WAP gateway provided by ISPs. All requests for service may beauthenticated for security by a Firewall system 3.

Once the requests have been authenticated by the Firewall system 3, theyare received by the web application system that, in one example (whichexample is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive), could be acluster of web servers 4 serving the application in collaboration withapplication servers 5 and the backend database system 6 to perform allnecessary processing. Once the requests have been processed, the webapplication may then create a static document that would contain theresponse to the request after the processing was completed. Thisresponse may then be redirected to the client interface that invoked therequest through their respective devices. Typical requests made by theClient-end 1 would be to register for the system, thereby enabling themto use scanning capable devices/equipment to get product information,upload device data (handheld scanners, static terminals, mobile phonesand handheld devices with inbuilt scanners), upload product information,and compare the product information against their profile.

In another embodiment the present invention provides a method relatingto the input, output and analysis of product information against acustomer profile to provide data about a potentially harmful substanceand/or a substance that the customer chooses to avoid for health and/orother reasons. In this regard, food allergies and interference withprescription drugs are common examples of the necessity for harmfulreaction detection to prevent consumption of ingredients not suitedand/or intended for a specific individual. Disease or illnessmanagement, e.g., Diabetes, Celiac Disease, or religious observancee.g., Kosher, are other compelling reasons for such consumptionavoidance.

In one embodiment the present invention may use scanning technologies toenable users to use text scanners and/or barcode scanners to getinformation about a potentially harmful substance and/or a substancethat the customer chooses to avoid for health and/or other reasons. Thedata may be entered by individuals or others (e.g., a pharmacist) withinput devices capable of OCR-based scanning, by scanning a “CustomerCare Card” followed by scanning the barcodes and/or ingredient labels ofthe items they are interested in. This information may then uploaded toa web application (e.g., of the type referred to in FIG. 1) and atranslation of data may take place. For example (which example isintended to be illustrative and not restrictive): First the Customerbarcode is interpreted followed by item barcodes. The customer barcodeis then checked against the database to be associated with a customerprofile. As stores might be using their own user database, a replicationfeature may be provided to store managers and administrators toreplicate their database with the central database of the system. Thecustomer profile is then temporarily stored in the process space of theweb-application. The item barcodes are then checked against thedatabase. The item information (e.g., Name, Composition and Ingredients)are stored in the process space of the application. This is comparedagainst the customer profile. The results are stored in a staticdocument and then sent back to the client application that invoked therequest. In on example (which example is intended to be illustrative andnot restrictive) the upload request can be made in two modes: persistentdata detection and manual upload. In persistent data detection mode, thedevice constantly waits for data. This may apply to small devices suchas a handheld or mobile phones, where large amount of data cannot bestored. As soon as data is received by the device, it may be “pushed”via the Internet to the web application system for interpretation. Thiswould mean that the user would view information about the items one byone. In manual upload mode, the user invokes the upload of data from thedevice to the web application system, thereby allowing them to makemultiple scans and “push” a set of item barcodes to the system.

In this regard, there is another aspect considered by this embodiment ofthe present invention in connection with the persistent data scanningmode. Since the “push” takes place as soon as the scan occurs, the userprofile may have to be available beforehand. This could imply that theclient application to be used by handheld or mobile devices might askthe user to get authenticated before they start scanning items or allowa small plug-in to be installed in these devices that would store thecustomer profile before hand.

With reference now to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, an illustrationdepicting components grouped together based on their nature and the tierthey are fitted in is shown. The Customer (Client) Package 7 representsthe client application that would be used to access the service. Theclient application could be, for example, browser-based static web pagesserved to computer terminals, kiosks, web enabled PDAs and/or mobilephones by the server-based Web Application System or could be a softwareplug-in embedded into the device itself thereby preventing the userhaving to authenticate themselves each time they want to use the system.Mobile Processor, Handheld (Scanner) processor and terminal process 10,9, and 8 respectively represent the processing that would be initiatedby the client-application and serves to illustrate a scenario wheremultiple interfaces could be used by the customer to access theapplication.

In one example (which example is intended to be illustrative and notrestrictive) all operations requested by the client-end processor couldbe sent via simple http using browser protocols and/or an XML package 11on the client-end that would provide a more structured andplatform-independent way to address all the requests from thesedifferent devices from a common platform. The XML package 11 representsthe client-side process that would actually send data in and out of theclient-application and therefore represents the purpose and not anecessity that using XML would be the only way. This package could bereplaced by any package that would provide features fulfilling thepurpose described in this section.

In one example (which example is intended to be illustrative and notrestrictive) all requests coming to the server may be redirected to theweb application 12, which then interprets the requests and processesthem using the components installed on the application server. A typicalupload request would be redirected for parsing to the Upload Parserpackage 13 that includes a set of components instantiated depending onthe device information. For example (which example is intended to beillustrative and not restrictive): After the parser package finishesfiltering the barcodes, the first barcode is assumed to be a userbarcode and is run against the database UserDB 15 to extract thecustomer profile. If matches are not found against the UserDB 15, theupload parser may send a message to the web application 12 to indicatean “abort”. If the customer profile is found then the rest of thebarcodes are compared against the ProductDB 16 for item information.Thus, we get two set of data, namely customer profile including theallergies, sub allergies, and/or ingredients that the customer has torefrain from consuming and a set of ingredients and/or compositioninformation for each item uploaded by this customer. This information isthen taken by the data investigator package 14. The data investigatorpackage 14 then runs a comparison between the two data explained earlierin this section and creates a result sheet including any essentialalerts against the items uploaded and extensive information for thecause of this alert. The result sheet may be saved as a static documentand sent back to the client-application via the web application.

Referring now to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, these show additional illustrationof classes (components) by separating the client-side processes and theserver-side processes.

More particularly, FIG. 3 represents the client-side class diagram foran embodiment of the present invention. If we further break down theclient-side processes, the client-side application would be broadlydivided though not limited to three categories: Mobile_App 17representing a client-side application that could be browser-based orstand-alone and used by PDAs, mobile phones and other small interactivedevices with computing features and an inbuilt monitor and scanner,HandHeld_App 19 representing a browser-based application for usersequipped with handheld personal barcode scanners that could be connectedto a computer and Terminal App 21 representing a client-side applicationinstalled on static terminals that could be used by customers at storelocations. Scanner_Addon 18, Scanner_Plugin 20 and Terminal_Plugin 22modularizes the process specific to the retrieval of data from thescanning device and converting into an intelligible piece of informationthat could be sent, for example, via XMLHTTP 23 to the web-applicationsystem.

Further, FIG. 4 represents the server-side class diagram for anembodiment of the present invention. After getting validated by thefirewall system 3, a server-side component receives data sent by theclient-side XMLHTTP 23 into a server-side XMLHTTP 24. The Web Service 25represents the complete server-side system that includes the cluster ofweb servers serving the web application 26, the application serverhosting components such as the Upload_Parser 31, Data₁₃Investigator 30and util_Components 27 and the backend database server hosting UserDB 28and Product_Db 29. In one example (which example is intended to beillustrative and not restrictive), WAP requests will be converted intoan http request by the web service before going through the common webapplication system. The Upload_Parser 31 could make use of the UserDB 28and ProductDB 29 (e.g., by components associated with theUtil_Components 27). The WebApplication 26 could also make use of theUserDB 28 and ProductDB 29 (e.g., by components associated with theUtil_Components 27). A typical upload request would be redirected forparsing by the Upload Parser package 31 that includes a set ofcomponents instantiated depending on the device information. For example(which example is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive):After the parser package finishes filtering the barcodes, the firstbarcode is assumed to be a user barcode and is run against the databaseUserDB 28 to extract the customer profile. If matches are not foundagainst the UserDB 28, the upload parser sends a message to the webapplication 26 to indicate an “abort”. If the customer profile is foundthen the rest of the barcodes are compared against the ProductDB 29 foritem information. Thus, we get two set of data, namely customer profileincluding the allergies, sub allergies, and/or ingredients that thecustomer has to refrain from consuming and a set of ingredients and/orcomposition information for each item uploaded by this customer. Thisinformation is then taken by the data investigator package 30. The datainvestigator package 30 then runs a comparison between the two dataexplained earlier in this section and creates a result sheet comprisedof any essential alerts against the items uploaded and extensiveinformation for the cause of this alert. The result sheet is saved as astatic document and sent back to the client-application via the webapplication.

Referring now to embodiments shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, it isseen that these Figs. illustrate schema for various broad use casesdepicting scenarios in which the actors (e.g., Customers, StoreManager(s) and Administrator) would interact with the system. Of note,the term “actor” is an abstraction for entities outside a system,subsystem or class that interact (e.g., directly) with the system.Further, a “use case” is a specification of sequences of actions,including variant sequences and error sequences, that a system,subsystem, or class can perform by interacting with actors.

More particularly, FIG. 5 illustrates a high level use case diagram forcustomers interacting with the system. Of note, in this embodimentcustomer 32 represents the end user who would be actually performing thescanning on items and/or uploading this information to the webapplication system 26. As seen in this FIG. 5:

-   -   A customer 32 could register to the web application system. This        would create a barcode against the customer and also generate a        customer care card. The customer 32 would then be able to        download plug-in 18, 20 and use the system for scanning items        and getting it validated.    -   A customer 32 could manage his customer profile subject to        authentication using the web application system.    -   A customer 32 would scan item barcodes across stores or any        recognized outlet where food and drugs are sold. The customer        would also be able to use text scanners to scan nutrition and        ingredient labels for products and validate it against his        profile (e.g., via the plug-in 18 and 19).    -   A customer 32 would be able to Upload scanned data by an        interface in a persistent data collection mode or manually.    -   A customer 32 would be able to clear scanner data (especially,        but not limited to, personal barcode scanners).    -   A customer 32 would be able to access the web application system        26 for future reference if need be.

Further, FIG. 6 illustrates a high level use case diagram for storemanager(s) interacting with the system. As seen in this FIG. 6:

-   -   Store manager(s) 48 would be able to manage their stores,        outlets and sale location 54 via the system. In one example        (which example is intended to be illustrative and not        restrictive), this would only comprise managing data related to        their specific stores that are subject to change and would be        essential to be modified in the system as well.    -   Store manager(s) 48 would be able to manage store customers 53        data using their premises or services via the system.    -   Store manager(s) 48 would able to manage store product catalogs        52 limited to their store locations, outlets and sales location        via the system. In one example (which example is intended to be        illustrative and not restrictive) this would be subjected only        to data maintained specifically by/for the store or outlet.    -   Store manager(s) 48 would be able to manage allergy, sub allergy        and other hazardous constituents 51 recognized and validated by        the system. In one example (which example is intended to be        illustrative and not restrictive), this would be subjected only        to data maintained specifically by/for the store or outlet.    -   Store manager(s) 48 would be able to replicate 50 the central        database server components UserDB 28 and ProductDB 29 to be in        sync with data available in external user and product databases        hosted by the stores, outlets and sales locations. In one        example (which example is intended to be illustrative and not        restrictive), this would be subjected only to data maintained        specifically by/for the store or outlet.    -   Store manager(s) 48 would be strictly subjected to        Authentication 49 to perform any of the mentioned activities.

Further still, FIG. 7 illustrates a high level use case diagram for anadministrator interacting with the system. As seen in this FIG. 7:

-   -   An administrator 41 would be able to manage all stores, outlets        and sales location 42 via the system.    -   An administrator 41 would be able to manage all customers 43 via        the system.    -   An administrator 41 would able to manage product catalogs 44 on        behalf of stores, outlets and sales locations where the        consumables will be sold.    -   An administrator 41 would be able to manage Allergy, sub allergy        and other hazardous constituents 45 recognized and validated by        the system.    -   An administrator 41 would be able to replicate the central        database server components UserDB 28 and ProductDB 29 to be in        sync with data available in external user and product databases        hosted by the stores, outlets and sales locations.    -   An administrator 41 would be strictly subjected to        Authentication 47 to perform any of the administration        activities.

Referring now to FIG. 8, implementation level architecture providing anoverview of how a system according to an embodiment of the presentinvention would be deployed is illustrated. More particularly:

-   -   FIG. 8 embodies the various tiers that would comprise the        system. The various nodes represent physical deployment of        various components at various levels in the system.    -   The Client-node 55 may comprise two essential parts. The core        scanning and upload feature may be provided by the textreader        component and barcodereader component described earlier in this        document as plug-in 18, 20 and 22. The second part in this node        may be the client-application that would use plug-in 18, and 22        to interface with the system. The client-node may be accessible        and configured to be used by multiple computer devices such as        computer with a browser, WAP enabled phones and handhelds or        static terminals installed onsite where the consumables will be        sold.    -   The client-node 55 may present a different interface for Store        Manager(s) and Administrator to perform activities illustrated        in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7.    -   The firewall node 56 represents the set of security features        provided at the server end of the system. This could be a set of        hardware and/or software that may be, for example, manufactured,        developed and/or supported by a recognized third party.    -   The web server node 57 represents the location where the web        application 26 would be hosted. This may involve one or more        than one web server working as a cluster. All static and dynamic        webpages may be served from this node.    -   The application server node 58 represents the location where all        server-side components would be hosted and utilized by the web        server node 57.    -   Additional components such as plug-in installer 61 to provide        embedded plug-in 18, 20 and 22 to be installed or served to the        client-node may reside in the application server node 58.    -   Additional Components such as ScannerManager 62 may reside in        the application server node 58. The ScannerManager 62 may track        all scanners and maintain information regarding the use of the        scanners.    -   Additional Components such as Users 63 may reside in the        application server node 58. The Users 63 component may group all        processes essential or invoked by/for users.    -   Additional Components such as Products 64 may reside in the        application server node 58. The Products 64 component may group        all processes essential or invoked for products.    -   Components such as DataManager 65 may reside in the application        server node 58. The DataManager 65 component may group all        processes essential or invoked for data replication as        illustrated, for example, in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7.    -   The Back-End node may act as the central repository for UserDB        28 and ProductsDb 29. In addition to this, a MasterDB 66 may        serve if desired to store information about the system in        general.    -   The Back-end node 59 may also include the infrastructure 60 that        has to be in place to allow fast and reliable information to the        components hosted by the application server node 58 and the web        server node 57.    -   An audible and/or visible alert may be sent to the user whenever        an incompatibility is encountered. This could be detected and        sent from the web server node 57 to the client node 55.

In another embodiment, by translating synonyms relating to the sameingredient, the present invention may allow an immediate and reliabledetection of all ingredients related to one specific allergy.

In another embodiment, the present invention automatically performs thefunction of alerting consumers to harmful sub-ingredients that may notbe specified clearly in the nutritional label.

In another embodiment, users/beneficiaries of the present invention maybe: the allergy afflicted; individuals receiving prescription drugs;children (e.g., those whose physicians, neurologists, and/or othermedical specialists advocate removal of certain ingredients from theirdiet as it is perceived to interfere with learning, e.g. Feingold Dietrecommends a gluten-free and a food colorings-free (Yellow #5 and Red#3) diet to improve the focus of children diagnosed Attention DeficitDisorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD));women who want to decrease the possibility of having a child with foodallergies who are instructed by their doctor to refrain from consumingcertain ingredients during their pregnancy; religious-observant (e.g.,Kosher or Hindu); vegetarian; individuals with ingredient sensitivity(e.g. lactose intolerance or other ingredient sensitivity); individualsmanaging an illness and/or disease (e.g., such as individuals withdigestive disorders and/or with chronic conditions (e.g., ulcers) whichare aggravated by specific ingredients; children (e.g., those who may bereceiving prescription medication for perceived learning disabilities(e.g., Ritalin or Adder all) who must refrain from certain OTCmedications and/or food/beverage ingredients that may inhibit orsuppress the effectiveness of the prescription or its duration).

In another embodiment, the system and method for this invention isdisclosed and declared to elaborate various actors, entities and otherphysical and logical units that collaborate and participate throughmultiple scenarios and mediums to detect harmful ingredients in food,OTC remedies and related consumables as specified by their nutritionaland ingredients labels that may cause allergic reaction, health risks orany incompatibility between prescription drugs and normalfood/ingredient consumption of an individual, on an automated, real-timesystem. The invention may use scanning based technologies (e.g., BarcodeScanning and/or Text Scanning) as well as non-scanning basedtechnologies via an interactive communication channel that could be usedfrom a centralized access medium or an offline setup that: (a)translates various terminologies used in nutritional and ingredientslabels; (b) compares the composition information with the customer'sprofile; and (c) alerts the customer to the presence of harmfulingredients or prescribed (recommended) food substance.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “A”), acomputer-based system is provided. This computer-based system ofembodiment “A” may permit a customer to determine the compatibility offood/medicine interactions on an automated real time basis by detectingharmful/incompatible ingredients in food, drugs and/or relatedconsumables as specified by their nutritional and/or ingredients labelsthat may cause an allergic reaction, health risks and/or anyincompatibility with the normal food habits or prescribed drug intake ofa specific individual comprising. The system of embodiment “A” maycomprise: (a) any suitable scanning device, such as barcode or textscanner for reading barcode or text on the product's label capturinginformation by scanning the item(s); (b) uploading the scannedinformation to a centralized or distributed system working with a singlecentral repository or distributed repositories of product relatedinformation; (c) mapping the information uploaded with the nutrition andingredients data; (d) comparing this data with a Customer Profile (asdescribed, for example, in embodiment “B” below) with ingredients orcomposition that may be incompatible and/or cause allergic reactionan/or health risk and therefore is to be avoided, or, conversely, isprofessionally recommended as a dietary requirement and thereforeincluded; and (e) generating an alert, which alert that signals thepresence of harmful ingredients or required dietary ingredients, audiblyand/or with adjoining text.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “B”), acomputer-based system for a customer to determine the compatibility offood/medicine interactions on an automated real time basis may useCustomer-Profile information. Such Customer Profile information may bestored, and said information may include harmful food substances,allergic ingredients in food, drugs and related consumables incompatibleand/or harmful to the customer and/or wherein determined thresholds ofspecific substances, according to the nutritional information, areexceeded-establishing an Avoidance Profile, and/or conversely, dietaryrequirements and nutritional valuations beneficial to the customer,establishing a Requirement Profile.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “C”), acomputer-based system for a customer to determine the compatibility offood/medicine interactions on an automated real time basis as describedin connection with embodiment “A”, wherein the information scanned isembedding Customer Profile information of embodiment “B”, may include:(a) a scanning device, such as a barcode or text scanner, providingoutput information indicative of the information scanned; and (b) anapplication process that takes the data as an input and compares it withthe stored Customer-Profile.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “D”), acomputer-based system for a customer to determine the compatibility offood/medicine interactions on an automated real time basis is provided.This computer-based system of embodiment “D” may comprise: (a) atext-based scanning device providing product information by scanning thenutrition and ingredients labels of item(s); (b) handling this data viaan embedded application as described in connection with embodiment “C”;(c) comparing this data with the Customer Profile as described inembodiment “B” for possible ingredients or composition that may causeallergy, health risks and/or might be prescribed as a healthy andnecessary food substance; and (d) generating an alert to the customer,in an audible and/or visual signal, as to the presence of harmfulingredients and/or prescribed food substance and/or required dietaryingredients.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “E”), acomputer-based system for a customer to determine the compatibility offood/medicine interactions on an automated real time basis is provided,comprising: (a) an application embedded into existing independentsystems (e.g., upon an intent of use by the system owner), whichapplication is able to: (i) execute upon the occurrence of an event(e.g., Search request, Add to Cart, etc.); and (ii) capture productinformation related, but not limited to, nutritional composition andingredients of item(s); (b) comparing this data with the CustomerProfile as described in connection with embodiment “B” for possibleingredients or composition that may cause allergy and/or health risksand/or might be prescribed as a healthy and necessary food substance;and (c) alerting the customer to the presence of harmful ingredientsand/or prescribed food substance by sending an audible and/or visualsignal.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “F”), acomputer-based system to be used for processes described in connectionwith embodiments “A”, D″, and/or “E” is provided, comprising: acentralized application that would facilitate users to create their ownCustomer Profiles through an interactive channel specifying informationrelated, but not limited to, allergies, illnesses, prescriptions anddietary requirements.

In another embodiment (hereinafter referred to as embodiment “G”), acomputer-based system to be used for processes described in connectionwith embodiments “A”, D”, and/or “E” is provided, comprising:applications that would facilitate users to access their own CustomerProfiles through different types of interactive channels, such as byscanning or swiping a barcode subscriber card, entering a loginmanually, recognizing finger prints as well as iris identification, orwhatever auto-ID developing or evolving technology becomes standard,practiced or customary.

While a number of embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed, it is understood that these embodiments are illustrativeonly, and not restrictive, and that many modifications may becomeapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.

1-22. (canceled) 15-22. (canceled)
 23. A system for determining food ormedicine interaction of a user, comprising: 1) a memory having at leastone region for storing computer executable program code; and 2) aprocessor for executing the program code stored in the memory, whereinthe program code comprises: a) code to populate, by a programmabledevice, a database, that correlates at least: i) a first productidentifier corresponding to at least one ingredients of a first product;and ii) a second product identifier corresponding to at least oneingredients of a second product; b) code to create and maintain via theInternet utilizing a web-based mechanism, at least a first user profile,comprising user health information for a plurality of users; c) code tocapture, in real-time, a first product identifier received by scanning afirst product by at least one hand-held communication device, whereinthe first product includes indicia associated with the first productidentifier; d) code to transmit, in real-time, the first productidentifier from the at least one hand-held communication device to thedatabase; e) code to compare, in real-time, the first user profile tothe first product identifier corresponding to the at least oneingredients of the first product obtained from the database; f) code totransmit, in real-time, to the at least one hand-held communicationdevice, the results of the comparison of the first user profile to thefirst product identifier corresponding to the at least one ingredientsof the first product, wherein the results are used to: (1) output analert when the first product, based on the first user profile, includesa harmful ingredient; and (2) output an alert when the first product,based on the first user profile, includes a recommended ingredient; g)code to capture, in real-time, a second product identifier received byscanning a second product by the at least one hand-held communicationdevice, wherein the second product includes indicia associated with thesecond product identifier; h) code to transmit, in real-time, the secondproduct identifier from the at least one hand-held communication deviceto the database; i) code to compare, in real-time, the first userprofile to the second product identifier corresponding to the at leastone ingredients of the second product obtained from the database; and j)code to transmit, in real-time, to the at least one hand-heldcommunication device, the results of the comparison of the first userprofile to the second product identifier corresponding to the at leastone ingredients of the second product, wherein the results are used to:(1) output an alert when the second product, based on the first userprofile, includes a harmful ingredient; and (2) output an alert when thesecond product, based on the first user profile, includes a recommendedingredient.
 24. The system of claim 23, wherein the user healthinformation is selected from the group consisting of: allergies,prescriptions, chronic illness, medical condition, and dietarypreferences.
 25. The system of claim 23, wherein each of the usersassociated with the first user profile are in the same household. 26.The system of claim 23, wherein the results are further used to suggesta substitute ingredient.
 27. The system of claim 23, wherein the resultsare further used to suggest a substitute product.